The present invention relates generally to driver circuits for output switches, and more specifically to driver circuits for reduced ringing in output switching voltage and reduced dead time when controlling multiple switches.
An output switch may be used to provide a switching voltage in response to a control signal from a driver circuit. The output switch may provide an output voltage that switches between a low switching voltage and a high switching voltage. The switching voltage transitions between these values in response to changing state (e.g., on and off states) of the switch. In practice, when the output switch is switched between the on and off states, the switching voltage is accompanied by spiking or ringing which may cause unwanted noise, over-voltage stress on the switch, or Electro-Magnetic Interference (EMI). Techniques and circuit are needed to reduce the unwanted spiking and ringing in the switching voltages.
Characteristics of the circuit or desired performance of the circuit can limit how fast the switches transition between the on and off states. However, it is desirable to have switches that transition quickly between these states. Thus, techniques are needed to improve the speed of switching between the on and off states of the switches while still providing the desired performance characteristics of the circuit.